Street-sweeping trailer.



G. H. BUTLER. STEEET SWEBPING TRAILER. APPLIOATIOII FILED M124, 1913.

mama Sept. 15,1914.

WITNESSES:

' @TCATE@ CHARLES H, BUTLER, T! UAKLANI}, CALIFORNIA.

sensor-swimmers rrnmnn.

winner.

it is the object of this invention to nrovide a street sweeping trailer adapted'to be 1 from a. motor or other power pivctally connected to rho rear end of a vehicle and having a rotary broom operable generator on the vehicle Another objectis tomount the trailer insluch manner that the revolving broom will. enter depressions on the road surface ano *therbby enable the sweeping of uneven or irregular surfaces and to provide means for stabilizing the trailer and preventing ii; from bouncing when traversing rough roadways or crossingstreet railways and otherpro jections and depressions in the street, and thus maintain the broom. in contact with the road surface at all iinies,

Other objects will appear hereinafierv invention primarily resides in a revoluble broom mounied within a housing, the axis of which broom. is in vertical alineznent with the horizontal axes of caster wheels on which the housing? is supported, means for connecting; the housing to the rear end of the vehicle, means for rotating the broom from a source power carried by the vehicle, and means operating on the powertransmission means for cushioning the housing andbroom when traveling over uneven surfaces v The invention further consisis of the parts and. the construction and combination oi parts hereinafter more fully described and claimed, having; reference to the accompanying; drawings, in which- Figure l is a side elevation of the Invention,' with parts broken away. Fig.2 is a 'rear elevation with parts removed. Fig.

3 is an enlarged detail section on she line A- A of Fig. l.

in the drawings A indicates the housing of a trailer which is open at its front end and on its underside. Extending longitudinally through the housing,- A is a shaft, 2

on which a rotary broom 3 is rigidly mounted. The shaft 2- 1S join-nailed in suitable ing" with the poin' Specification oi Letters Patent. Pgmgomted figpfb 115 new Application filed November Q4, 1918. Serial No. 802,629. I

hearings on she end of'tlie housing A, and

has a pulley wheel a mounted onlone of its ends over which'arope-helo 5 is rove; the

belt 5 passing around a drive ulley 6, on

a shai'b i; mounted on-a vehic e B'of any suitable description Theshaft 7 de- Signed to be misled from any source of '8 to which are attached channelirori up rights or standards 9 connected at their upper ends to the housing A by brackets 16. il'ournal'ed in bearings 11, carried on rho brackets 8, are spindles 12 havihg yolreslil on their lower ends in which wheels 1% are revolubly mounted; the wheels 14 have their horizontal axes normally alined with the axis of the broomcarrying' shaft 2 and paralleling the latter. lhe wheels 14: forni'the running-gear on which bhe housing A of the trailer travels.-

Biy positioning the spindles l2 forward of the veriical axis of the shaft 2 and disposing the wheels 14- with their axes in alinement with the axis of the shaft 2, the broom 3 will, when rotaiied, be caused to move into concact with ihe road-bed on a line coincidh,

' '5 contact; of the periphwish the road surface cry of the wheels thus insuring the cont-act of the broom with iihe r0acl-hed when the wheels 1% travel into depressions or over uneven surfaces, and (511- abling the thorough sweeping of the surface iraversed by the trailer. L

The housing A is attached at its upper portion to the vehicle body B by means of links or rods 15 which are divided into two parts connected together by spiral springs 15, to permitoi? a slighl; backward and forward movement of the upper portion of ihe housing A in relationto the vehicle body B. The lower portion of the housing A has forward projecting arms 16 which extend on opposite sides of the vehicle body B and are pivotally connected to trunnions 16' on the latter. The housing A on the wheels 142 forms a trailer which may be attached to;

means of the horizontal ax es of the caster wheels 14.

, formed on a hand-wheel 22,.gournaled in a bearing 23 on the upper end 0 the upright 9.

The connection between the rod and the arm 19 is as follows: The upper end of the arm 19 is formed with a slot 2 1-, through which the end of the rod 20 passes, as shown in Fig. 3, and attached. to the end of the rod 20, in front of the arm 19, is a plate which is connected With a plate 26 rearward of the arm 19 by bolts 27.

Interposed between the plate 26 and a similar plate 28, bearing. against the rear face of the arm 19, is a spring 529 which serves to form a resilient connection between the rod 20 and the arm 19 so that the latter 7 may have a yieldal'ile rearward movement in relation to the bar 20. By operating the hand-wheel 22 the bar 20 may be advanced or retracted to adjust the arms'19 and 17 and cause the wheel 18 to bear upon the up per run of the belt 5 with any desired degree of pressure and thereby maintain the belt 5 taut. The yieldable connection between the rod 20 and the arm 19, obtained by the use of the spring 299, permits of a forward rocking movement of the upper portion of the housing A without causing excessive strains on the belt 5; the spring 29 tending to right the housing A and to normally maintain it with the axis of the shaft 2 and the axes of the wheels 14 in vertical alinement with each other, This is important in that the proper relation of the broom and the wheels lit will be maintained when the trailer is being drawn over uneven or irregular surfaces, In some instances it may be desirable to mount the wheels 14 other than on swiveled okes 13 it bein im ortant however to arrange the wheels 14 with their axes on the same vertical plane as the axis of the broom when the trailer is being moved in a forward direction.

Having thus described my invention, What is claimed and desired to secure by Letters Patent is:

In a street sweeper, a vehicle, a driving pulley thereon, a trailer housing having pivoted connection to the vehicle, a rotary brush in the housing, a driving belt for the brush passing around said driving pulley, vertical uprights secured to the sides of said housing, caster wheel supports for the housing carried by the uprights and having their axes in vertical. alinement with the axis of said brush, means for maintaining the housing in a vertical position, said means comprising a bell crank lever pivoted to one of said uprights, a wheel carried by one arm of said lever and engaging the belt, a bearing mounted on the upper end of said last mentioned upright, a threaded rod passing through said bearing and secured to the other arm of the lever, resilient means between said arm and said bearing, and a hand wheel for advancing or Withdrawing said rod.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand. in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES H. BUTLER.

Witnesses:

JOHN H. Hnnnine, W. W. Heater. 

